Roku Wants to Know What Else You’re Watching in Order to Offer Similar Shows
Roku is rolling out a new software update that will add an unusual new service where your Roku can control what you watch via cable or antenna and then recommend streaming shows to you.
When you connect an antenna or cable box to your HD Roku TV, you’ll be prompted to turn on the new Advanced Ways to Watch feature. This feature uses automatic content recognition technology to scan what you are watching and then suggest other shows available on the streaming services you subscribe to. For example, if you accidentally stumble upon some old Twilight Zone episode over the base cable, a notification might pop up on Roku telling you where you can stream more episodes without worrying about ads. In theory, he could even recommend a completely different show, such as Black Mirror . It’s a great idea, but there are so many TV show options out there these days that it’s hard to imagine any of us needing another recommendation.
This new feature is completely voluntary and really only applies to the subset of people who have an HD Roku TV but still subscribe to a cable or use an antenna. If you’re thinking of signing up, you can take a look at Roku’s privacy policy , which is pretty clear that Roku retains all the data it collects for advertising purposes.
Apart from this, the update adds several other new features such as a list of favorite channels, customizable naming of inputs, and improvements to the pause function in live streams. The update will be released in the next few weeks.
Roku OS 7.6 New Features | Roku